The worst NFL draft pick of all time by every team
By Erik Lambert
27. Pittsburgh Steelers
player. 55. . DT. Texas Tech. Gabe Rivera . 27
This is the one pick that late Pittsburgh Steelers owner Art Rooney regretted the most according to his sons. The 1983 draft is widely considered the best in NFL history. It was stacked with Hall of Fame talent in the 1st round alone. The Steelers were an aging team by that point and were looking for new blood to hopefully extend their success from the 70s into the next decade. Considering how the previous dynasty started with Joe Greene, they wanted it to go through the defense.
Thus Gabriel Rivera was their pick that year. He was a monster defensive tackle from Texas Tech with surprising speed and athleticism for his size. It looked like they had their next foundational piece. Then just a few games into his career, Rivera was involved in an auto accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down. Meanwhile, the player that Rooney had hoped for and the Steelers could’ve taken went on to the Hall of Fame.
He was Pittsburgh native Dan Marino.